All parents are also reminded to register on Class Dojo if they have not already done so. This will enable access to praise and reward points, and photo stories of each class.

Please check your child’s Learning Journal to check that they are wearing the correct school uniform. We are seeing a number of items of clothing being work that are not part of our school uniform

In the run up to International Week, we are looking for parents and family members to get involved and come in and share something of their home countries and traditions. If you would like to come in and read with your child’s class, cook with them, teach them a song or dance, or just give a talk about where you are from, please get in touch with Mr Lowery

The children have been enjoying our short story anthology and have grasped the features of a number of different genres. Next week the children will be challenged to analyse and compare stories within this anthology and direct their own learning by choosing which stories they would like to study. Children will choose how they wish to present their findings and will also create a poster outlining the differences in the genres they have studied.

For parents of those students who have been given banded reading books, please remind your child to return them to school when the books have been finished, to enable us to swap for fresh titles. Thank you to those who have shared in their child’s learning by listening to them read or asked questions about the text.

Maths

In maths, students will perform mental calculations, including with mixed operations and large numbers. They will solve addition and subtraction multi-step problems in contexts, deciding which operations and methods to use and why. They will also multiply multi-digit numbers up to 4 digits by a two-digit whole number using the formal written method of long multiplication. Students will look at the order of operations (BIDMAS), and consolidate their understanding of factors, multiples and primes. We will continue to practise mental maths fluency and times table speed and accuracy.

Topic

In our AD900 unit, we continue our study the Kingdom of Benin, in West Africa. We will continue to look at the religion of Benin, and make some early comparisons to the Ancient Mayan belief system. We will be debating the British invasion of Benin in 1897, to practise our skills of argument.

Some topic vocabulary which we will be using includes: artefact, archaeology, architecture, civilisation, codices, culture, customs, domestication, empire, rituals.